Sapphire Midnight
by sapphire999
Summary: it's a sailormoon knock-off. it doesn't really have all that much to do with the original characters, but they will be mentioned. its about what the future will be like, based on what's going on now and fantasy. it's a work in progress, but should be good
1. A brief explanation

Sapphire Midnight  
  
Chapter 1 A Brief Explanation Hello readers I'm sapphire999. I thought I should warn you, just to be fair, this part of the story is a little boring, but you won't understand the rest of the story unless you read it. I promise the story gets better. Oh yeah this story is a knock off of sailor moon and doesn't much involve the original scouts. Sorry about that. Well, please read and review. Hope you like it. Sapphire  
  
In the center of the heart of the Sapphire Empire, there is a shrine. It is in the absolute center of the empire because it is supposed to represent the center of life. Inside the temple are many wonders to behold. There are scrolls, scriptures, tearooms, and many other rooms. There is art in every square inch of the shrine. Beautiful wall murals, mosaics, paintings, carvings, statues, and many other beautiful things drip from the shrine, easily making this the most beautiful place in the entire imperial establishment. But inside this place lies a secret room. It is a sealed room, which holds many secrets. One young man has discovered its biggest secret. His name is Daranden Yuki and he has discovered the sleeping princess sapphire.  
  
There is a story that goes along with this one, but to keep the story going it has been shortened. The war on terror had developed into a devastating World War 3. Many resources were becoming exhausted. Scientists all over the world rose to the challenge. They found a complex way to replenish resources and improve all sorts of technology in the process. After 3 years the war was at a stalemate with all nations. Peace negotiators met at the UN to try to settle this situation.  
  
The world was divided into 6 empires. Asia went to Sapphire, Europe to Ruby, North America to Diamond, South America to Emerald, Africa to Aqua Pearl, and Australia and Antarctica to Topaz. Soon after this, individuals with supernatural powers were discovered.  
  
Needless to say, the Empires fought over them too. Peace negotiators met once again to decide what power went where. Everyone was shifted around except for those with no powers. Sometimes entire families were separated and many people resented the compromise, but they didn't desire anymore conflict so they stayed quiet. Government formats were set up and all necessary changes were made. But, being humans, we still weren't ready to settle down. The world was in conflict over what to do if something else should happen.  
  
This is where the princesses come in. A spell from the high priest of every empire's major shrine was given to the emperor of each establishment. The spell, once used would seal the chosen warriors of each empire until a person with the right characteristics woke them in a time of great need. The seal would stop time for that warrior; they would be frozen in a sleeping state until the right person woke them up, hence they wouldn't age at all. Although the warriors were frozen, they'd be completely aware of what happened around them. There was a tournament in each empire, where only people with supernatural abilities could fight, to determine which warrior would be the imperial guardian. All of the chosen warriors were females, so they were called sleeping princesses. They were given a college education within ten years. After those ten years of learning and training, it would take at least half a year to completely perfect the warrior's techniques. After that, they were sealed, which brings us back to our current point.  
  
Daranden Yuki is 18 years of age, with untidy, yet groomed, brown hair and sapphire-blue eyes. His skin is a pale-tan color and is exactly 6 feet and 11 inches tall. He is a strong, smart, and talented musician. He is also part of the newest branch of military, the knights. He is a top- ranking imperial guard. His job is to protect the emperor and citizens.  
  
The sleeping princess he's found is Case Harmony. She is a beautiful, slender girl who has pale skin and waist-length, straight dark brown hair. Her eyes are closed. Her clothes appear to be ceremonial robes. A small box encrusted with jewels lay next to her, within this beautiful box lie the scrolls, the key to awakening her.  
  
The scrolls, written by the head priestess are only half way translated. The first half has been translated and can easily be read. It is the spell, which will seal the guardian once again. The second half, however, has not been translated and only the Emperor knows what it says. It is the spell with which one can awaken the guardian. The Emperor passes the secret of these scrolls onto the next generation. The Destiny  
  
Daranden was not the only one to discover a secret room. The discoveries were being made on all of the imperial establishments. In the Topaz Empire, Demos Maxfield has discovered Katie summers, the Topaz Empire's protector. Demo is also a knight. He's tall and tan, with sky blue eyes and long, braided, brown hair. At a height of six foot three, his muscular, yet toned build is easily noticeable. He was just passing by the shrine when he was on his lunch break, and remembered the shrine served food. Unfortunately, he didn't remember where the cafeteria was, and in a matter of seconds, he was lost.  
  
That's when he found it. He stepped into a room to get directions, and there it was. The huge coffin-like, jewel encrusted case. It dissolved at his lightest touch. When he saw the girl inside for the first time, he was shocked, but as he returned to reality he began to notice how beautiful she was. Her pale skin and shoulder length brown hair glowed in the candle light, which also illuminated the name: Katie Summers. She wore a type of ceremonial robe, and her hand rested on a beautiful box. It was made of topaz. When he finally looked at something else, it was his watch, he once again felt hunger. He felt guilty for leaving her there and almost considered waking her up. But then, he realized whatever reason she was like that; it must have been a good one. With that he left for the cafeteria.  
  
In another instance, Zin Asumo of the Ruby Empire stumbled upon the secret room during his search for the tearoom. His brown eyes had searched the hall for the room, but no luck was to be had. He ran a tan hand through his gorgeous spiked, brown-gold hair. A mirror reflected his 6ft 2" figure (not including the hair). There was frustration on his rebellious face. He finally resolved to search the passages for a worker who might tell him where to find it.  
  
He saw a door at the end of the hall. He was drawn to it, sort of like a moth is drawn to a flame. When he entered he saw what the other guys saw. He found a beautiful girl named Amber Flare. She was a small girl; a light sort of person who looked to be incredibly fast. Her tan skin had paled and her reddish, curly, mid-back length hair was sprawled around her face and on the pillow, and her copper highlights made her look as though her head was set ablaze. A kind look was set on her face, one of concern and caring.  
  
He thought of what reason one could have for doing this to such an angelic looking person. What could she possibly have done? For some reason or other, he cared deeply for her; it felt like she needed him. He remembered why he'd come to the shrine in the first place and guiltily left her to go home.  
  
In the Aqua Pearl Empire, Marcus Hex found the room when he was looking for a place to hide from his rather evil manager. The 6ft 4" guy had practically ran to it. His hair was platinum blonde, short, and wavy. He toyed with his ear as he stopped running to examine the hall. His left ear, which he toyed with when nervous, was pierced 3 times. In the top hole was an aqua pearl stud earring, in the middle hole was a navy stud earring, and in the bottom was a small golden hoop. He was pale skinned, and had crystal-blue eyes. He heard his manager, who was angry with him for not staying awake during his speech about employee conduct, round the corner. Marcus bounded for the only door in the passage. As soon as he shut the door behind him, he saw what all the others had seen.  
  
He noticed the name engraved in the lid which dissolved as he touched it. It said: Anna Marie Skye. Her dark skin set off her raven hair, which had gold highlights. Her beautiful face was full of sadness. He wondered why as he stared at her. He suddenly remembered his manager, who was probably still looking for him. He decided to leave her there and face the music. As he left, he felt his heart sink.  
  
Yokashi Shigure of the Diamond Empire was just visiting when he found it. He had back hair that he kept slicked back out of his face, even though he looked good when it was in his face too. His 6ft 3" figure had somehow found it's way into her tomb-like room. His gold eyes flashed as he took in the same sights the others saw. His olive skin suddenly tingled and he saw the name DJ Light inscribed in the case.  
  
DJ was fabulous. Her maroon hair set off her light skin. The spiral curls sprawled out on the pillow. Her mischievous face worked into his heart as he stared at her in disbelief. He was drawn out of his trance by his watch alarm. He left her there without thinking about it and came back the next day.  
  
In the Emerald Empire Miliardo Barron had found the room looking for a place to meditate. Miliardo was unpredictable and respected, but feared. His hair had been so many different colors; even his mother couldn't remember its original color. Now though, it was red, short, and spiky. His skin was a pale olive color and his green eyes were stormy.  
  
When he found the girl he panicked. Was he in some sort of morgue? When he saw the small box though, he began to calm down. Her name was Mona Lionne. Her hair was blonde, waist-length, and straight. Her pale skin was giving off a soft glow. She had a kind face that had a slight frown on it, but she looked almost happy. As he stared at this angel, he wondered what was going on.  
  
End Of Chapter One  
  
Thank you all for reading my fic. Even though this chapter was a little boring, I hope you enjoyed it. When the next Chapter is up, please read it. It's better, I promise. Thank you again, and please review. Sapphire 


	2. Hearts of Crimson Gold

Chapter 2  
  
Hearts of Crimson Gold  
  
They say having a heart of gold is one of the highest compliments you can receive. I decided to play off of that for this chapter. The first one was kind of boring, but I figure you have to know and understand what's going on first. I hope that's good enough, but in case you don't understand what I'm getting at, I'm sorry! Thank you to all my reviewers! Sapphire  
  
Case  
  
Hi, I'm Case Nicoliana Harmony; I was born on January 8th in a city formerly known as Tokyo. However, I don't speak much Japanese. When I was a little girl, my mother told me having a heart of crimson was a high compliment. She said having a heart of gold was an empty sort of compliment you say to someone who is kind, but a heart of crimson meant you were full of compassion, love, and forgiveness, not just kindness. Humanity, as my father said, was the base of this compliment. Out of all their wise teachings, this will be the one I'll always remember.  
  
I came from a strong family, a kind family. I've always been thankful for that. I wasn't even a week old when the disastrous World War 3 began. I grew up during hard times. My father taught me self-defense and my mother taught me etiquette. I learned many things from my parents: fencing, archery, art, music, and dance were all things they taught me.  
  
I lived next door to a gracious and kind family, and across the street from a rude, and very disrespectful family. The family I lived next door to had a son about my age. We were friends for a while but were soon broken apart. The family I lived across the street from also had a son my age, and just for the record we were never friends, in fact I had nothing to do with that entire family. Once, when I was about fifteen, the boy who lived across the street attacked me. He'd tried to rape me. I was tired and caught off guard, not a good combination in my case. I did my best to put up a good defense, but I soon ran out of energy. He was about to get what he wanted when my friend from next door passed by the alley we were in and saved me from that creep! He cursed and ran into the alley, much faster than he usually ran, and jump-kicked the guy. He let go of me and went flying. My friend saw me collapse and ran to me to see if I was all right. I can't remember his face but the way it felt when he held me stayed with me forever. I felt safe in his strong arms. The guy who attacked me was so sued! I don't think I ever saw my friend after that incident. We'd been separated up until this point in time. Our reunion was short and not the sort you'd commonly come across.  
  
The reason we were torn apart is because government spiritual scouts somehow realized I had spiritual powers. The only remaining sailor scouts trained them: Sailor Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Pluto, and Saturn. The government scouts told my parents that if they didn't let them take me to a special school where I'd be trained to become a protector, they'd be forced to imprison my parents and eliminate me from this world. They assured my parents I'd be in the best of care, that they wouldn't let anything happen to me as long as it was in their power to stop it. Before I even knew what happen I was taken from my parents for ten years. I was only five and never slept without my parents close-by. That was soon to change.  
  
I was put through intense training for my powers, but even more intense were my learning standards. This was all at the infamous Helman's Academy, or as we students liked to call it, Hell on Earth. During my ten years in Helman's, I learned what a person graduating from your average college would know. I only saw my parent son holidays. We were given holidays according to religion. Catholics, like me, were given lent, Christmas, All saints Day, Immaculate Conception, Assumption, Ascension, and Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, off. That's 46 days off, not really enough time. 460 out of 3650 days, is not enough time to be with your family, and some didn't even get that much. It was because of this I felt so lonely for so long. And to add on to this, nobody received mail from their families until they passed their tests with a 96 percentage or higher, these tests were always at the end of the week. If it was discovered you didn't have what it takes to become a spiritual warrior, you had the option of either dropping out, staying in or, my personal favorite, being charged directly into the KNIGHTS military force without knowing what you were getting into. Great choices, huh?  
  
Then it was suddenly the first day of lent, and my friend was saving me. I've forgotten everything about that guy except how it felt to be held by him. I wondered for a while if I'd ever see him again, and he was soon pushed to the back of my thoughts as I heard an announcement. There was to be a tournament to discover who would be the guardian of this imperial establishment. I was told by The government officials to fight against everyone with my full ability, or I'd risk everyone's life, at least everyone who lived in the establishment any ways. I controlled wind and pure energy, a rare combination in my establishment. I was a very powerful opponent. I'm glad too; otherwise I would have gotten beat up a lot worse. I spent weeks at a time in the hospital. None of my fights were easy. With my every victory came another visitor to the ER. My heart cried every time I saw someone loaded into the ambulance. I knew it was either my fault, or I could have stopped it. My last fight was against the best guy in the tournament; it was to discover who would become the guardian. I fought my best and we quickly wore each other out, he fired one last energy ball, which I barely dodged, and followed him up with a forceful wind that blasted him to the wall of the ring. I remember the last words the masked fighter said to me. He said that I had a heart of crimson gold. I must have gone through five boxes of tissues that day in the hospital. I was in pretty bad shape, so I was there for a week before I heard the news; I had been chosen to become the guardian.  
Daranden  
  
My name is Daranden Heero Yuki. I was born in a city formerly known as Tokyo on June 5th. That's all I'll tell you about my past for now, you don't have to know everything about me! I'm in the KNIGHTS military force. Allow me to explain. I went to Helman's Academy because their scouts found out I had spiritual powers. I was taken from my family and friends when I was 5. I was put through hellish training. None of the school officials realized I was concealing my powers so I could leave, however, they didn't let me pick. They put me in here.  
  
KNIGHTS is really an acronym for Kingdom, Necessary Investigative Guardians High Tech Spiritual. It's finished off with military force, but that's another story. Our job is to protect citizens from supernatural or very big threats using our powers. Everyone in this imperial establishment has the power to control pure energy. Few have the power to control wind; it's a rare trait. Some of us can even control all types of power, but it's a one in a million chance. I can control wind as well as pure energy.  
  
KNIGHTS force buddies and I were like family. We were always there with one another. But fate was not kind to us. The Academy realized I was a valuable asset and I was forced to fight in a tournament to determine who would be the establishment's guardian. Everyone was forced to wear masks during the tournament to shield from the pain of fighting your best friend or that kind of stuff. I was kind of glad about that because I had a childhood friend who lived next door to me, she was taken away from her family days before me, and I was sure she'd be forced to fight. The last time I saw her, was a long time ago. I remembered her face a little bit, but I was sure I'd recognize her if I fought her. That and my buddies from KNIGHTS were fighting too.  
  
I fought with everything I had and ended up winning every match I was in, except for the last one. None of my victories were easily gained; I spent a long time in the hospital. All the nurses and doctors knew me by the time the tournament was over. I lost my last match to a female warrior. My childhood friends words echoed in my head. She said to have a heart of gold was an empty compliment, but a heart of crimson was the highest compliment you could receive. I saw the fighter crumble after my defeat, she was crying. I couldn't tell if she was in emotional pain or agony from her wounds. I remembered my friend's face and told the fighter she had a heart of crimson gold. She looked at me and cried harder. After that, I passed out and they carried me away. I was in the hospital for at least 2 weeks and I got flowers from all my friends and some from the fighter that beat me.  
  
While I was in the hospital, I remembered the time I rescued my friend from a rapist. He turned out to be Ganyemede, one of my neighbors (He'd been to the Academy too, but he'd been expelled for some unknown reason.). I can't remember her face anymore, but I remember the way it felt when I was around her. I don't know why I saved her when I saw her. I guess my noblesse oblige was in overdrive. I didn't even recognize her at first. Then I sped up and kicked Ganyemede. He let go of her and she fell. I realized it was my friend and carried her home. I waited until her parents were home to take her back to her house. While she was at mine, she was out like a bulb on my bed. I was waiting on their front steps. I don't know why I remembered this incident then, but I did. Weird, huh?  
  
When I was released from the hospital I spent half a year at Hell on Earth, and graduated. I went back to KNIGHTS where my friends welcomed me back. It was the first time I felt like me again in a long time. After that 2 months passed and I heard the masked woman I'd fought had to go through a lot to become guardian. All that work to be imprisoned in your own mind. I didn't think about it much until another month shot by.  
  
My neighbors from back when I was a kid died. I was stunned. I couldn't believe it. My thoughts immediately turned to my long-lost friend, then somehow shifted to the masked fighter. I wondered if she could deal with this kind of loss in her state, Or if she'd even know about it. I don't think I've ever been so sad. I couldn't attend the funeral. I was busy protecting civilians from a gang headed by a woman named Io.  
  
After that I forgot about it. I grew to be happy in the present. I wasn't busy too much so I decided to volunteer at a nearby shrine. It's ironic that I'd go there since I'm Catholic. But it's not really that kind of shrine; it's more like a community center. I never really understood that until that incident I had.  
  
I was exploring the shrine, since I was new. They'd given me my uniform, one of those old-fashioned priest outfits. I was thinking about how comfortable I was when I got lost. The shrine was huge. I went to a door to see if someone inside could give me directions. When I entered I saw a large coffin like box on a holy alter. It was made of pure sapphire. When I touched the lid it totally dissolved. What I saw then was the most beautiful and sad creature on the face of this earth.  
  
She was, as I later found out, the sleeping princess of this establishment. The masked fighter and my long-since-forgotten friend danced their way into my thoughts once more. After that I managed to come back to this spot everyday to see her. It felt like she needed me to be there for her, to comfort and care for her. It was like she was begging me to protect her, to be proof she existed. It suddenly made sense now, that this shrine wasn't one of worship. No one would think of looking here. I understood all too well.  
  
I noticed the first time I saw her that she was crying in her sleeping-state. She was never smiling. There was always a sad, solemn, and lonely expression on her face. I didn't realize it just then, but I cared about her more than anyone else I've ever known did. It even felt like I knew her. A single thought crossed my mid then, "I'll always protect you."  
  
I hope you liked this Chapter of Sapphire Midnight. I never thought I'd finish this one! Well, let me know what you think. Review. And if you like it pass it on! Keep reading! My love goes out to you! I appreciate all the reviews I get. Keep reading. Sapphire 


	3. Love Is Pain

Hi, and once again, welcome to another chapter of Sapphire Midnight. First off, I'd like to apologize. Please forgive me! I'm sorry for being so darn lazy; I haven't gotten around to typing this for quite a while. I have many chapters already written, but not typed. I apologize for behaving so shamelessly. Also I want to thank my supporters and reviewers. Thanks so much you guys! I hope you're enjoying the story so far. Lots of single people out there are very stubborn and say that love is overrated. That may very well be true, but us hopeless romantics beg to differ. This chapter sort of reflects how those two sides are influenced. From a background of pain, and a background of irrepressible hope. Read on to see for yourself. Love ya and keep reviewing! Sapphire  
  
Katie  
  
Hi my name is Katie Jean Summers. I was born on October 25th, in a place formerly known as Sydney. I was taken from my home, like so many others, to Helman's Academy for my special training. It didn't affect me as deeply as the others though. I've always had a bad relationship with my parents. They hit me and screamed at me. They used me and threatened me. They sometimes forgot to feed me and gave me rags to wear. I never made any friends then. It wasn't until after I got to the Academy that I was treated somewhat like a human. I was given nice clothes, as much food as I wanted, and enough attention to make up for some of my heartache. I finally had friends. I was starting to feel happy at last!  
  
I have the power to draw from the emotions of others and turn it into energy for an attack. That's why I'm so in tune with other people's emotions. My power is called love energy. Everyone's attack becomes more powerful when they have something to channel it through. My attacks are more easily used like that. My special weapon is the heart rod. It looks kind of like a magic wand except way more decorative. I can call on it whenever I need it because, like everyone else's special weapon, it has the power to teleport itself to my hand.  
  
I've always felt out of place because of my parents' "TLC", but I never let that keep me down though. I always try to look on the bright side of things. When I was chosen, I went through constant pain, stress, and crying sessions. It was hard for me to get through it all. The last thought in my head before they sealed me was, "At least I can wake up again." I remember what it was like; endless chants, dim lights, ceremonial robes, incense, headaches, and worst of all, weakness. From that point on I was trapped inside my own mind. It was not pleasurable.  
  
When I was trapped inside my head, I knew what was going on. It wasn't because I could see it or someone told me, I could just feel it. It was like an eerie sixth sense. I know it sounds weird and "I-see-dead- people" cliched, but it's true. All I could do was reflect upon myself. It was a nightmare. I hate my past; I just wanted to erase it. I did my best to run away from it but I couldn't avoid it. I tried to focus on the present, but I soon found out there wasn't going to be much in that present except for my visions and, ironically enough, my past. I spent about six months trapped in my past. It was pure torture.  
  
I remembered the boy who'd been like a boyfriend to me. I clearly recalled everything about him. We were so in love. During that accursed tournament, before I won, I saw him die. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to see. After that I'd become more of an introvert. I never loved anyone remotely near as much as I loved him, fearing they'd meet the same wretched end. I swore to myself I'd never fall in love again, but I knew I couldn't keep that vow forever.  
  
I remembered how cruel my parents were and all the pain I had to feel as they abused me in numerous ways. But in the six months I spent like that, I realized you have to accept your past, otherwise you'd never be able to move on. From then on I lived in the present, occasionally remembering my horrible past. I let go of my anger and sadness, at least some of it. I will never forgive the wrongs done to me and I never forgot, but I refused to be sad.  
  
Love is a terrible and beautiful thing, bringing both joy and sorrow. To me, I'll never forget, love is pain.  
  
Demos  
  
Hi there! I'm Demos Andrew Maxwell. I was born in a place that used to be called Sydney. My birthday is November 9th. I'm 18 and live in the KNIGHTS dorm. I'm a chick magnet! Not that I like to sound conceited, but I don't want all the unnecessary attention.  
  
Anyway, let's skip that for now. I was taken from my home to go to Hell on Earth for my powers too. I control power created by peoples' emotions; "love energy." All my friends in Hell on Earth thought I was smart, which isn't necessarily a lie, I am smart, it's just sometimes I don't use much sense when it's needed. But enough of that, let's move on, shall we?  
  
When I found Katie, she looked happy, yet sad. Her aura was similar to mine. It was weird. She was beautiful and tragically void of love at that point in time (I could feel it, I'm in tune with others' emotions). She had signs of great pain on her face. I stayed with her for the longest time; it was as though I were drawn to her. Somehow I'd fallen in love with a total stranger, but that's not out of the ordinary for me 'cause I'm a hopeless romantic (I fall in love with someone once a week). Somehow though, this was different. I can't explain it-it was nostalgic.  
  
I wished her eyes would open. You can tell a lot about a person through their eyes. I would always go back to that room every day no matter what. I went to see if her eyes were open, but they never were. One week when I was very busy, I didn't make it at all. I was not falling in love with anybody else. Something inside me changed every time I visited. Slowly, but surely, I was falling deeper into a plot that I never would have imagined at the time.  
  
The week I never made it, I was way too tired to go anywhere but to bed. We (the KNIGHTS force) were busy controlling riots and threats caused by a woman with supernatural powers. I believe her name was Europa. Nobody but me ever came close to catching her. The battles against her were long and extremely tiring. She always fought the whole time no matter how demanding it was.  
  
After things cooled down a bit I went back to the shrine to see her again. Katie's eyes weren't open. She was the same as always; healthy and asleep. After a few hours, I went home.  
  
Right after I got out of the shower, I received a call summoning me to KNIGHTS HQ. You know something's wrong when you're directly summoned to HQ. I put on my uniform instead of my armor and took my power rod with me just in case. Upon my arrival, I was told the emperor had summoned me. I was to wait while his majesty was delivered to HQ. I had never been so nervous in my entire life.  
  
"Demos Maxwell," the messenger said. "The emperor is waiting for you in the delegation hall."  
  
I was taken to the hall and escorted to the middle of the room where I knelt before my ruler.  
  
"Demos, you have served me well in these days of panic," he said. "In truth I came here to ask for your help. You will be rewarded for doing so with a home in the Mars Colony." Now you may not know this, but we have found a way to live on planets like Earth through our advanced technology, but only people who are like Bill Gates rich can afford to live there, because it costs so much with all the living and teleportation fees. To receive an offer like this was not what we like to call common. I nearly tipped over when I heard. But there's always a catch.  
  
"What would you have me do my lord?" I asked him.  
  
"As you know, the attacks and threats here have rapidly increased over the last week. Incidents like these have been happening all over the establishments. They are getting out of hand. Our only defense against such attacks, are presently the KNIGHTS Military force. Despite our efforts we are barely keeping these individuals at bay. It is our duty to protect the citizens at all costs."  
  
"Please forgive my rudeness my lord, but why are you telling me this?" I was getting confused pretty fast. He looked at me and sighed deeply.  
  
"I just got out of an inter-establishment conference on this matter. It has been decided that we are to awaken the guardians."  
  
I went into total shock. Thoughts rushed through me. They raced through my head, scaring me until he spoke once again.  
  
"I understand what a shocking decision it is. I objected to it at first, but the point that there was no time left soon brought itself into view. The scriptures state that you are the key to awakening the guardian. Tomorrow at dawn, we shall go to the shrine and awaken her."  
  
"Sire, why is it you think that I am the one the scriptures indicate to? How is it that you thought of me? And why is it you refer to her as 'the guardian' as though she isn't a real person?" I was outraged. I couldn't believe he expected me to just go along with this. The Guardians' revival is reserved for the utmost emergencies. This was a trivial matter that the KNIGHTS force could handle. She would surely be sealed again once she took care of it. I couldn't live with myself if I let that kind of thing befall her again.  
  
He simply replied, "I understand you've been serving loyally, and loyalty is the key to her awakening. Only the most loyal soldier can awaken her."  
  
I was in love with a girl I didn't even know. How could I let this happen? I know for me pain is a part of love, something you have to endure for true happiness to shine through.  
  
Thanks for reading this chapter of Sapphire Midnight. I hope you have enjoyed it. Please review! If you have any questions about my story e-mail me. I'm glad to read your opinions whether they're good or bad. I love all the help you give me! Thanks for reading and hang tight for another chapter coming sooner than this one did. ^^ Love ya! Sapphire 


	4. Fate Intertwines Us

Chapter 4  
  
Fate Intertwines Us  
  
Hi everyone! For those of you who took the time to review, thanks! I'm glad to hear your opinions of my story. I think it's great that you take interest in my story, and before I go and tell you how great you are for reading I'd like to say I'm very conceited, and could care less if you dislike my story, because I like it, and that's all that really matters. However, I do hope you enjoy it and aren't wasting time reading it. No matter if you think it'll hurt my feelings, please review! Now that that's out of the way, welcome to another chapter of Sapphire Midnight. I hope you've enjoyed it thus far. To my reviewers northstars, shimmersea, and Lady Silver Dragon, thank you so very much! As for sniper957, I'm sorry you feel that way about me and my fic, but thanks for telling me anyway. I think anybody who's read the fic up to this point knows what's going on. If not, you'll understand soon enough. Happy reading! ^^ Sapphire  
  
Anna Marie  
  
Hi, my name is Anna Marie Renea Skye; my friends call me Anna. I'm 18 and my birthday is April 7th. I was born in a place formerly known as Cairo. It's not called that anymore though. I went to Hell on Earth because I could control water. I also have the rare power to control ice. I've never lost at water war! But that's enough of that.  
  
I've always been religious and credited God for my powers, but being a direct, though distant, descendant of Sailor Mercury and Sailor Neptune helps. Sailor Mercury was my father's great-grandmother on his mothers' side. Sailor Neptune was my mother's great-grandmother on her father's side.  
  
I had one of the highest GPA's at the academy. I'm a brilliant strategist and am great at math, which is ironic because I hate math with a passion. I don't remember much about my childhood except for the beautiful music my family would always play. I come from a long line of artists, musicians, and geniuses. I'm skilled in all of those areas.  
  
I make friends easily and am known for my loyalty. I've had my fair share of crushes too. Two of them became my boyfriends. One was always depressed and no matter what I did, it never helped him. He apologized to me for everything he'd ever done to make me sad and killed himself. I never got over it. My other boyfriend beat me. Needless to say our relationship didn't last very long at all. He ended up in the ER. I may be forgiving, but I know when to beat the tar out of someone. I'd like to admit that it was only in self- defense, but he had it coming. But you don't really need that much information, right?  
  
After I won the tournament, the emperor who told me of my harsh fate summoned me. Awaiting me was pain and sadness. I asked him to grant me a favor before this came to be. I wanted to say goodbye to my friends and family. I was taken to my home, where my family held a farewell party for me. My sisters cried and my brothers moped, my friends begged me to stay, and my parents shed tears of mixed pride, happiness, and sorrow. Then, before I knew it, I was at the Water Shrine.  
  
Priestesses bathed me in perfumed water and combed my hair to perfection. I was dressed in a ceremonial gown and dowsed in holy water. The priestess toweled my hair dry, and led me to a secret chamber. By the time I got there I was dry. They put me into a coffin like box made of aqua pearls. I have to admit I was totally scared! I thought I was in my own funeral. Soon the Head Priestess entered the chamber and lit the tallest candle. She began to chant a spell. A feeling of sleep settled or my eyes. The only thing I saw that first day was my suicidal ex, who wouldn't- who couldn't stop apologizing.  
  
The rest of my hellish time in that accursed state was spent reflecting on my past. I had the sickening feeling that I'd been forgotten, that I'd always be alone, but I heard the Heavenly Father tell me that fate will intertwine my soul with another's in time. At least I knew I 'd be getting out of here. It was the most traumatic experience I've ever been through.  
  
Marcus  
  
Hey there, my name is Marcus Oliver Hex. I was born in what used to be known as Cairo. My birthday is November 1st. I own a glass shop by the Water Shrine and am also an officer in the KNIGHTS force. I control water and ice. Because of that I went to Hell on Earth. I hated that place. It was like a prison, you couldn't leave the grounds unless it was a holiday. I never got to play the piano or flute while I was there, and that was one of the few things that made me happy.  
  
I made good grades while I was there, I was an excellent duelist, I had complete control of my powers, and my large group of friends became my second family. Whenever I managed to have fun, it was always controlled fun, and never enough. I had a few crushes here and there, and once I even had a girlfriend. She was prejudice and two-faced. Now that I think of it, what did I ever see in her anyway?  
  
I took part in the tournament and lost in the quarterfinals. From then I joined the KNIGHTS, opened my glass shop, and became a part time musician at the Water Shrine. There I saw Anna for the first time. She was a beautiful girl, and I could tell a large burden had been placed upon her. I knew she must've been the Aqua Pearl Guardian. Shortly after I found her, attacks and threats rained upon the imperial establishments, and a woman named Callista headed the attacks in our area. It was all we knights could do to keep her at bay. She was extremely powerful.  
  
When the attacks thinned out a little bit, I was summoned to KNIGHTS HQ. When my emperor told me the plan I went into shock and denial. He also told me there were records that these attackers were all exceptional students from the academy. That scared me. Everything he'd told me was the truth. Our time was growing short.  
  
"Only the kindest soldier may awaken the Guardian. I don't believe a kinder soldier than you inside our borders exists," he told me.  
  
"I'm flattered sire, but do you think it wise to play with someone's life as though it were a toy?" I asked him.  
  
"I want you to know that I never supported that decision," was the reply I received.  
  
"I accept my duty, but I shall fiercely rebel if you try to seal her again."  
  
Without wasting anymore time they took me to a locker room where I was bathed in perfumed water and changed into ceremonial robes by monks. I was taken to the room that I'd visited so many times. It took forever to get ready for the ceremony. Thousands of candles were lit and certain incense was burned for hours on end. Flowers were placed around her. I was about to nod off when they called me to the coffin. I merely touched the lid and it vanished, just like always. There she was again, that dark skinned, raven- haired angel. She slept there; unaware of what might happen when she awoke. She would have to be very careful about what she did from that point. She slept almost peacefully, unknowingly, and waited.  
  
"To awaken her spirit, you must kiss her while I chant. You mustn't stop until I finish chanting, or the spell will not work."  
  
So I'd betray my love with a sign of love, how tragically poetic. A kiss was all it would take. When she awoke I would protect her with my life. I wouldn't let anybody seal her again. I sighed, closed my eyes, and leaned in to kiss her as the emperor took prayer pose.  
  
Thanks for reading! Now please, please, I beg you, review! This chapter was pretty short, sorry about that. I wrote this chapter while distracted on a road trip. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed it. Look for another chapter of Sapphire Midnight coming soon. Thank you once again!  
  
Love, Sapphire 


	5. Awakening Halted

Chapter 5  
  
Awakening Halted  
  
Hi everyone! ^^ Thanks for reading this far! Please Review! I don't care if they're short, last for 5 pages, or whatever! Let me know what you think. Welcome to chapter 5, I hope you're enjoying the story, but if you aren't and are still willing to give it a chance thanks for your faith, let me know what you don't like about it, okay? Anybody can follow what's going on by this point in the story. I doubt there are any people who don't get it yet. I think you should know that this story is a Revised Version. It is almost completely different than the original draft. If this story gets some decent reviews, then I'll make a sequel borrowing from my other drafts. But I dare say you had enough of my useless chattering. Please read and review. Love to my story's fans, Sapphire ^^  
  
Amber  
  
Hello, my name is Amber Chrystal Flare. I was born in a place that used to be called Whales. I've been through Buckingham Palace, and been to Big Ben! It was absolutely fabulous! But that's enough about my tourist activity. My birthday is May 23rd and I'm 18.  
  
Since I was little, I've had this thing about expressing myself to others; I can't do it well. Music is the only thing that can help me with that. It's sort of an easy way out for me. Sometimes I even write my own music to help communicate my feelings to others.  
  
I love attention too. I don't always need it, but I get it all the time. I think that's why my parents wanted me to be a public official. I'm also VERY organized. Okay, let me rephrase that, I'm a total neat freak. I think it's easier to be neat and be able to find everything right away, than to be messy and slack off until you can't find your phone.  
  
I went to Hell on Earth, ironically enough, because I control fire. My power is hard to control because of its nature, but after hellish training sessions and lots of practice, I can use it for just about anything. I can bend it to my every whim. That's one handy power.  
  
I never had a boyfriend; my inability to share my feelings with others held me back. I've had plenty of crushes though. That makes perfect sense right? I feel sorry for the guys who always got anonymous valentine cards. That was my fault.  
  
I won the tournament because my opponent in the finals ran out of energy. Later I discovered she almost died of lack of air; she had asthma. I felt guilty for winning until I learned I was to be sealed away never to be called upon again until it would be up to me to save everyone from impending doom. I wasn't to thrilled about that. After I was sealed I never thought I'd wake up again. I was in constant pain the whole week before I was to be awakened, something really bad must've been happening on the outside. I felt the pain of the people who were definitely in danger. I was close to be awakened, but something went wrong, to ceremony was abandoned.  
  
I could talk to other people through dreams, I felt like a ghost. That feeling stopped me from using that ability for quite a while. I finally got the nerve to ask a monk whose life force I'd felt from inside the coffin. He didn't apologize to me, he just said to be patient. I was very frustrated and impatient at that time. I asked again and he told me what happened.  
  
Zin  
  
Hey, I'm Zin Asumo, I'm 19 and my birthday is June 30th. I was born in a place formerly known as Whales. I was sent to Hell on Earth for the gift of controlling fire, which is very hard to control. I hated that aesthetically challenged place. I wished I could burn down the Academy with my own power. Only one thing stopped me. A girl with curly red hair suffered greatly through her training, kind of like me. She never gave up or ran away from it. I was impressed. Then I realized I'd just be taking the easy way out by doing that. Later I learned the entire Academy was fire proof.  
  
I took part in the tournament and lost badly in the semifinals to a girl with asthma. I'm an officer in KNIGHTS now. I play many instruments too. I work at the Fire Shrine in the tearooms. I help clean the place up too. I basically make tea and scrub floors. Sounds like fun right?  
  
I stumbled upon Amber one day and kept coming back she reminded me of that determined redhead I looked up to. Her own red hair looked like real fire, sprawled out on her pillow like that. I wondered what color her eyes were. Then I remembered I had to leave, but I came back every chance I got.  
  
I was busy dealing with attacks lead by Io and her gang. My squad captured at least half of her posse. I'll never know what could possess someone to cause such destruction. Anyway, shortly after that the emperor summoned me to KNIGHTS HQ because of my strength. I was the key to awakening Amber, and in return for doing this, I would receive a home on Mars in any colony I chose. I wanted to say no but the emperor wouldn't hear it, so before I knew what was going on I was getting ready to kiss Amber. But before the emperor could recite the chant, Io attacked the shrine.  
  
I called upon my armor with melted my robes away and fit me into it perfectly. I called upon my ruby revolvers and burst from the shrine ready to defend it at all costs. She merely laughed and attacked with a larger dark energy ball than before. I created a firewall and used it as a shield for the shrine. She formed another dark energy ball, but I fired my revolvers before she got a chance to throw it. Fire in the shape of a dragon flew out of the guns; I'd used my fire dragon attack. It hit her square in the gut and she dropped her ball of black energy. I fired another shot and a fireball flew out of the weapon and totally demolished the energy ball before it reached the ground. Io was writhing in pain, and screaming, "Master please help me!"  
  
She disappeared through what looked like a black whole, and I removed my firewall when back up arrived. We guarded the Fire Shrine until another group of KNIGHTS officers relieved us. It was too late to perform the ceremony now; we'd have to wait until tomorrow. I collapsed on my bed when I got home. The news that attacks on the shrines in all the other establishments came to me in the morning. Suspicion rose within me as I got up. How could they have known about the ceremony? Who was Io working for? Then I remembered the story had been covered on the news yesterday because rumors were going on. Media will be our civilization's downfall. What is going on? Who would do this? Why are they doing this? Who is Io's master? I couldn't possibly know that the answers to these questions would change me forever.  
  
I was called to the Fire Shrine first thing in the morning. I was once more bathed in perfumed water and dressed in ceremonial robes. I was taken to the chamber where everything was ready. The emperor acknowledged my presence with a nod and assumed prayer position. I leaned over the coffin ready to do my part. And so the chanting was about to begin. The emperor was about to start chanting when the candles went out. So I got to catch up on my sleep against the wall, while they relighted the candles. She was still under the spell, and as one thing that went wrong led to the next, I was beginning to doubt this would ever work and began to feel a pattern, soon Io would attack and we'd guard the shrine.  
  
Finally everything was ready to go all set up. The emperor posed and I, once again, leaned into the coffin. At last I heard him chant and I kissed her for the first time.  
  
"Awaken Guardian, you are needed, in this troubled time summoned by those for whom you shed tears and blood, only to be forgotten. We honor your memory and call out your name, which must be sweet to hear again. We beg for you to lend a hand in protecting our precious land. Awaken Guardian I call out your name, AMBER! GUARDIAN RUBY AWAKEN!" he cried with every bit of strength he could muster.  
  
The cold lips that I had tried to warm instantly lit on fire and I sprang back. What I saw blew my mind. There she was, her eyes were still closed, but her body began to levitate off of the padded interior of the coffin. It rose about three feet into the air and then she stood straight and tall. Fire enveloped her body, and to my surprise, her robes caught fire. I made a move to try to put them out, but the emperor held me back. The flames wrapped around her to form armor. In a blinding flash of fire, her hair was in a ponytail, and real fire alloy armor rest on her body, protecting her from harm.  
  
I'm gonna have to cut you off here, I have to save some for the next chapter. Thanks for reading and I hope you've enjoyed it. You've been really great, so please, please, I beg of you, review! That's all for now, thanks so much for reading, and look out for chapter six coming soon! Love ya! Sapphire ^.^ 


	6. Diamonds Aren't Always A Girl's Best Fri...

Chapter 6  
  
Diamonds Aren't Always A Girl's Best Fiend  
  
Hi everybody! Welcome to chapter 6 of Sapphire Midnight. I'm glad to see you are reviewing, at least some people are anyway. ^^ I 'm very happy about that! Thank you so much for reading this far. I hope you're enjoying the fic. I'd also like to make a few announcements before you read this chapter. The original senshi, or scouts, will be appearing in later chapters with more than a brief mentioning; they'll be a part of the story. Also, chapter 7 will be the last first person narrative. The rest of the chapters are to be third person narratives. The first person narratives were to give you a glimpse into the hero/heroine's psyche. Well, I hope you keep reading my fic. And once you're finished reading please review.  
  
DJ  
  
Hi, I'm DJ Christian Light. I'm 18 and my birthday is on August 9th. I was born in St. Paul, Minnesota. It isn't called that anymore though. I grew up in Hell on Earth because I can control light energy. My power is very rare, but not all that difficult to control. The power of the light is said to choose only those with pure hearts and minds for it's domain.  
  
I am from a family of five, me being the middle child. I have to step out of the shadows of my older two brothers and be a role model for my younger brother and sister. It was very hard at first; my eldest brother can control the light too. My second elder brother is a powerful man in the business world. He invented the teleportation system. I have to find a way to out shine them. I had complete control of my powers before anyone else in my age group. That was impressive, but not good enough. I worked hard in my classes and received an award for being a math genius. It still wasn't enough. I graduated as the age group candidate for supremacy. I joined the KNIGHTS force and became one of the highest-ranking officers in my district. But that was the trouble, my brother was the best. It hadn't changed anything at all. I was then pulled into a world of pain.  
  
The tournament changed everything. I was forced to face my brother in the final round. I knew it was he because before the fight he removed his mask, I never wore one. He knew what he had to do, and I as well. It was hard to do. I'd always looked up to him and despised him. The fight tore me in two, and when it was finished, he won. He'd beaten me again. I spent a whole month in the hospital, but he spent three there. It was later decided that I had won instead of my dying brother. I was losing my family. He had somehow infected his wounds and there was nothing the hospital could do. I hated myself more than I'd ever resented his superiority. He was always weak and needed help. I swore to always give my all at everything I did from now on in his name. He suddenly meant more than my pain and suffering. We'd been forced to fight each other, with me the real victor because of a technicality. I hated the government and cursed them as I was put into that sleeping state.  
  
While I was imprisoned in my head, I kept revisiting the battle between my brother and I. It was a very dark period in my life that not even my power of light could brighten. I was now the best in my country. I was surprised it didn't feel better than this. Oh the Diamond Establishment was going to pay if they even tried to exploit my family or me. It struck me funny. Diamonds are a girl's best friend, according to the song, but Marilyn Monroe wasn't right. Diamonds aren't always a girl's best friend. But you know what? It wasn't as painful in the accursed box for me as the others; I never had a boyfriend, and I was always too busy to have a crush. I was always cared for and I never saw anything as traumatizing as I heard they had. They can say I don't understand and be right; I wouldn't, but I would know what pain is.  
  
Yokashi  
  
Hey. What's up? The name's Yokashi Shigure. I'm actually from Seoul, Korea. After the treaty was put into action my family and I had to move to California. I can control light energy, which is a mixture of light and pure energy. It is very rare for a person to have that ability, but, lucky me, I got it. Most of the people in the Diamond Establishment don't have any power at all because the power is so rare.  
  
I graduated from Hell with the title of valedictorian in my age group. My birthday is November 23rd. I'm 18. People say I'm cold, just like a real diamond, so my reputation as Yokashi the Diamond Cutter began. I'm one of the calmest and coldest guys in the KNIGHTS force. Even the North district knows about me. They are the states closest to Canada. I was known far and wide for being the best there was in 3 out of 4 districts, In the north district Bill Light and his little sister held the title of being the best in the country.  
  
During the tournament most people were forced to wear masks, but two people evaded these rules skillfully. I wore a mask so I wouldn't scare other contestants. Bill himself took me out in the match right before the quarterfinals. It was a close match though. He wouldn't have won if I hadn't been so careless with my maneuvering. I spent a long time in the hospital after that. I never found out who won the tournament. I heard it was Bill, then I heard it was his sister. I didn't trust too many rumors though. I got transferred to the area where the central shrine was and decided to volunteer there. I made alterations on my uniform though. I traded my uniform with a monk. It looked much better because the monk used to be in a secret society that had kick ass uniforms. I was like one of those Buddha-monk uniforms. Which is ironic since I'm a Buddhist.  
  
I stumbled across the secret room with the sleeping princess in it one day and realized it was Bill's sister. I heard her name was DJ. So that's what I called her. I came back quite a bit after that. Then the attacks made by Europa began. She's one ruthless bitch. I mean she uses people for shields when she wants to run away. I mean, damn. I never thought anyone in this time was that evil.  
  
Then I was called to central KNIGHTS HQ. There, my emperor told me I had to wake the guardian up to protect the establishment and its people from the terrorist Europa. Terrorist? Try psycho bitch. Then he had me taken to the shrine where I was prepared for the ceremony, which ended up being delayed because the crazy bitch popped out of nowhere and attacked the Shrine of Light. I busted out of the shrine and kicked her ass before she disappeared and went bye bye through a black hole.  
  
Then we tried the ceremony again and I was amazed at what happened next: Her body levitated half her height and she stood up in the coffin. Her spiral curly maroon hair flew up and her robes melted into armor like that of the female KNIGHT officer. Daggers hung on each side of her waist. Her bare feet were now in high heels that had straps. Her eyes opened to reveal beautiful crystal-blue eyes. Her pale skin had a little more color to it now. A light brighter than words can describe enveloped her body and when it died down, her top layer of hair was in a bow and she was standing between the emperor and I.  
  
She looked at me and said, "Thank you for letting me out, but in doing so, you have sealed your fate. I will rid the establishment of the threat and destroy those who awakened me so that I shall never be sealed again." You know that warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you hear somebody say I love you? Well, that feeling was totally void of my body now. It actually scared me for a minute before I saw her smile. She burst out laughing. I could not believe it. "Seriously though, thanks."  
  
I tried to say "your welcome" but something held me back. It must have been my pride. She walked to the emperor and genuflected. She had a serious expression on her face now. "Sire," she said, " why is it that you have awakened me? I have felt a great pain in the last few weeks. People are obviously suffering, but what is happening?"  
  
The emperor proceeded to fill her in on the state of the Imperial Establishments. When he was finished, she stood up and nodded. Then she turned back to me and walked over. I was in my cold place. "You must be Yokashi the Diamond Cutter. I am Diamond, the guardian of this establishment; you are to be my companion here and in the battlefield. It is ironic that you and I should be partners because of our titles. However, this is one diamond you can't cut." With that she walked to the door and vanished in a flash of blinding light. I called my armor, which melted onto me and took out my sword. I flew out of the shrine to see her and Europa fighting.  
  
Thanks for reading this chapter; sorry it was so short. I have to save something for the next chapter though. Please review and watch for another chapter of Sapphire Midnight. Thank you to all my reviewers! And please keep reading. I hope you're enjoying the story. Love you lots!  
  
Sapphire 


	7. Lightning Is Sacred, Tinkie Winkie Is No...

Chapter 7  
  
Lightning is Sacred, Tinkie Winkie Is Not.  
  
Hi everyone! I'm sorry for the delay in chapter arrival. I've been busy working on a lot of stuff. None of which relates to the story at all. Thank you to everyone who's read my fic, and an even bigger thank you to those who've reviewed. Before I perform the welcoming ritual I have a few announcements. Announcement number one is that I have writer's block! In case you didn't know, writer's block is a bitch. Well anywho.the next announcement is this is the last 1st person chapter. Yay! Last announcement, this chapter will be incredibly short because of the first announcement and because I want to get to better battle scenes. That's it. Welcome to chapter 7 of Sapphire Midnight. I'm glad you all are enjoying the story, if you aren't and are very forgiving, I'm sorry. If you just plain hate the story I encourage you to stop reading immediately. You might actually start (gulp) liking it (shiver). Oh well, enough of this jabbering. Read. Review. Enjoy. Sapphire  
  
Mona  
  
Hello everyone! I'm Mona Olivia Lionne. I'm 18 and my birthday is November 24th. I'm from the Emerald Imperial Establishment in a place that used to be called 'Brazil'. I've always been a neat freak. I swear I was born with 'Windex' in my hand. I always seem to forget that people can be mean to others for no reason. A girl I knew from the academy did. She was pure minded at first, but she grew to be corrupted and just plain evil. I never figured out why though. Perhaps it's because she hung out with that perverted little jerk Ganyemede. Oh well, it wasn't my problem at the time.  
  
I had to focus on my own problems. My power is difficult to master because it's one of the natural elements. I sometimes lost my temper and my power totally went out of control so I didn't have any roommates. I was always pretty lonely. I made friends with a few people, but I think everyone was afraid of me. I was really good friends with Amber, a girl who could control fire, but we lost touch. She had some of the same problems as I did. I had a few crushes, but they didn't last very long. They never noticed me anyway.  
  
But that's enough of my Hell on Earth days. I was sealed away for what felt like forever, but then a red headed angel saved me. I didn't get a chance to thank him before a fiendish looking monster attacked the great shrine. It had purple skin and reminded me of my history studies when we were looking up popular television shows for small children. I think it was a teletubie. Tinkie Winkie. Even by my little sister's point of view, that's really gay. But it attacked using summoning powers. It made things with its head and threw them at the shrine. All of them were explosive.  
  
I put up a barrier in order to protect the shrine from further damage. As soon as I did I was attacked by an explosive teddy bear. I got thrown back a couple of feet and it stung quite a bit. I didn't waste time trying to 'recover' because even though that thing looked dumb, it would expect me to do that. I summoned a lightning dragon and that sucker got fried. He was a very weak monster and left me wondering just what the puppeteer was trying to do. It was either to sabotage my awakening or destroy the shrine. But the question is, how would they know I was here? What were they really after? I took down the shield and sat down. My wounds weren't healing as fast as I wanted them to so I just focused my power into my fingers and used it to heal myself. My angel came up to me shortly after the battle.  
  
Miliardo  
  
Hey, what's up? My name is Miliardo Anthony Barron. I was born in a place called Chile. Nothing seems to be what it used to be called anymore. But I'm sure you don't care about that. Anywho. I'm feared and respected by many. I hope that someday when I walk down the street smaller people won't cower in fear. Well, now that that interesting bit of conversation is over, We can skip ahead. The Academy was Hell, I got a great job as a KNIGHT officer, and I'm currently available. Cocky, yes it is, but a lie, never.  
  
Anyway I woke up the pretty girl in a box (I'm not fond of long explanations ^^). She had an amazing fight, and for some reason I can't explain I was worried about her, even though she handled herself quite well. I don't understand what was going on because that thing looked so gay that it distracted me. I tried to see if she was okay, but she backed up with a weird look on her face. I couldn't figure out what was wrong so I gave her some space. She calmed down and eventually she started to open up.  
  
Hey, sorry it was so short this time, but I'm tired of writing first person narratives, they're getting hard to write, and incredibly boring to read. And to all you reviewers out there going, " Did you just pick up on that?!" I know. I also want you to know, IT'S MY FIC AND I CAN DO WHATEVER I DAMN WELL PLEASE WITH IT!!!!!! Well, now that that's out of the way, I hope you enjoyed the story and I'm sorry for yelling at you. Cries uncontrollably I'm just trying to be strong. If you don't like the story, flame me and move on, but please whatever you decide, review! 


	8. I Only Live to Serve

Chapter 8  
  
I Live Only to Serve  
  
Disclaimer: I own all of the materials except for the original scouts and their powers.  
  
I noticed that I had totally forgotten the disclaimers on my other chapters. Sorry about that. I've been really busy lately and writer's block has momentarily left me alone. For those who noticed I have other fics up, they were spontaneous ideas. They just popped in my head, where as this is a tad bit harder to write. Well, enough excuses right? You want the story. So. Welcome to another chapter of Sapphire Midnight. I'm glad to see I have constant reviewers now. You know who you are. Thanks for your opinions. You're great. School is kicking my ass worse than soccer. That's pretty damn sad. But enough jabbering. On to the chapter!  
  
In the imperial establishments, the emperors were having a meeting through a videophone. It was an odd scene indeed. Six old men sitting in six different throne rooms, talking about important issues that would affect every aspect of life for everyone through a television screen. Tell me that isn't weird. Come on now, who does that anymore? Anyway. back to the story. They were still chatting away about trivial things when a huge gong went off in the background of Sapphire's emperor.  
  
"The time has come to talk of more important issues than that of Emerald emperor's new crown. To open up the conference, I'd like to get straight to the main issue, the current attacks upon the imperial establishments," Sapphire emperor stated.  
  
There was murmuring from the other emperors and Emerald emperor let out a huffy little breath that was full of indignity. Apparently constructive criticism gets to his touchy little self. The man was of small stature and bragged to try and get respect. The ruby emperor was a tall severe looking man with dark reddish brown eyes. The Aqua Pearl emperor was a dark skinned man with beautiful amber eyes. Topaz emperor basically busted a gut laughing. He was a shorter man with long white hair and green eyes. Diamond emperor was a quiet man with violet eyes (contacts are big) who rarely spoke except to give advice, make requests or voice his opinions, and give orders. Sapphire emperor was probably the most important one there, he controlled most of the world's power, he was a middle sized man with dark brown eyes and pale skin. He was often stressed (numerous stress balloons had been blown up, and lay scattered in his room.0.o) and nervous, but that never stopped him from kicking ass in the political world. But you've heard enough descriptions. So on with the scene.  
  
"Indeed it has. Have you seen to the matter of awakening your guardian?" Aqua Pearl emperor asked.  
  
"Yes I have," Sapphire emperor said while nods came from the others, "and she has already proven herself to be an expert combatant. The KNIGHTS force has proven to be helpful, yet utterly exhaustible."  
  
"It is clear we can not continue to rely merely on the strength of the KNIGHTS. They are to weak to protect us any longer," said Diamond emperor.  
  
"It is the safety of the people that deserves the attention, we are only here to keep order and serve them," said Aqua Pearl emperor.  
  
"But it is the KNIGHTS force who are there to protect the people, do not forget we are the most important part of these establishments," Emerald emperor argued. "We cannot forget that without us, the order would fall and we would never have any kind of peace ever again."  
  
~*~  
  
Case sat on a bench in the palace. It was lavishly designed, with silk draping over it, and covered in jeweled ornaments. Her armor had faded back into the robes she'd been wearing. She was incredibly sad. She had had hopes of being able to see her family when she was unsealed. But she hadn't been able to do that. She had mentioned it to the man who came running out behind her to fight the monster, but what he told her; she was not ready to hear.  
  
Flash back:  
  
"My parents are."she began. Shock had gripped her entire body. She was paralyzed. Daranden came up to her in hopes of comforting her but she fell to her knees covered her ears and closed her eyes. "Liar! They just can't be! Liar!"  
  
Daranden genuflected and looked at her. He hated when people were sad. He pulled her hands away slowly, and she looked up with glazed eyes that could only mean tears were to follow. Then he did something surprising.  
  
"Case, I'm here for you, but I can't help you if you don't trust me. Try to remember. Would I hurt you?"  
  
"I have to idea what you're talking about, much less who you are, but you did save me from that nightmare, so you can't be all bad."  
  
End Flashback  
  
Daranden stood leaning against a nearby pillar, watching her cry. Then he heard a faint song. And he couldn't help but walk a little closer to listen.  
  
"To sit here and listen to the wind would be just fine with me, but I know that life needs to be lived and my soul needs to be free. Like the wind blows, I will be flowing from day to night. I will move on someday, that, I know. I 'll have to strength to face all of my fears, I know that someone is waiting for me to come. And I'll flow with them to heaven," She sang. It was quiet and shaky, but it was still beautiful.  
  
He quickly recognized that song. It was the song he heard her mother sing with her every day. He watched her pull her knees to her chest and cry into them. She couldn't believe it. They were gone. She had nobody left anymore. An unbearable sadness gripped her heart and she couldn't help but to cry even harder than before.  
  
~*~  
  
In the Ruby palace, Amber was standing against a bright red pillar. She hummed a song to herself and waited to hear what the plan of attack was. Then a most irregular emotion panged inside of her. It was an uncontrollable anger, fueled by the need for revenge. Thoughts of murder and destruction filled her mind and she smiled a sadistic smile. Then she saw the image of slowly dying men, women, and children. Her smile was replaced by shock, and her anger replaced by fear. She would have become even worse than the people causing the riots would and pain would. As she thought all of this, Zin was walking to her (the room was huge, so sue me).  
  
Zin saw her expression of shock and that strange and evil smile. He quickened his pace to find out what was wrong. It took him 30 seconds to get where she'd been standing. She saw him coming out of the corner of her eye and couldn't move she'd have to face him sooner or later. To her surprise, he didn't bombard her with questions, or even talk about much of anything, he introduced himself and smiled.  
  
"Hi, I'm Zin Asumo. It's nice to meet you," he said, extending his hand to shake hers.  
  
"Hi I'm Amber Flare, likewise," She said. She was sort of dumbfounded as she shook his hand. She was taken aback when she noticed he was staring at her.  
  
"What? Why are you staring?"  
  
"Your eyes are very beautiful, amber is a rare shade to find."  
  
With that he simply walked away, leaving her to wonder, what just happened here? He smiled when he noticed she was following him. She was falling into his trap. He knew he'd only be nuisance if he'd straight out asked her what was wrong. Psychological warfare was his specialty.  
  
"Zin! Wait up!" she said running up to him.  
  
"Yes, can I help you?" he asked putting on his cutest curious look (you can't tell me nobody does that).  
  
"Can I talk to you for a minute?" she asked.  
  
"Sure."  
  
And so he got his way once again.  
  
~*~  
  
In the Emerald establishment Mona was running at top speed attacking dummies with all her might, getting every last bit of doubt, frustration, and anger out of her system. It felt great to be out in the world again. She couldn't remember ever feeling this good. She stopped and screamed out, "Time!"  
  
"30 seconds!" Miliardo yelled. He was really impressed. It was a course record. There were 20 dummies on the course at different height levels. She was amazing.  
  
Mona took a towel form the shelf and a water bottle from the recruit who was momentarily stunned. She smiled and walked over to her new friend Miliardo.  
  
"Well aren't we just toned?" he asked.  
  
"Maybe, but that wasn't a very good run, I'm getting rusty."  
  
"Are you bluffing?"  
  
"The world may never know."  
  
Light laughter resounded and she was feeling better by the second. He looked into her emerald green eyes and smiled. Then he walked her to the locker room so she could shower and left her alone.  
  
~*~  
  
DJ was walking around in the Diamond palace. Yokashi was apparently not interested, and that was just fine with her. She still couldn't help but feel a bit, what's the word, angry. It was so rude of him to do this kind of thing! But then, why did she care? She didn't even know him. So what was up with that? Feeling confused, she ran head on into him. Hard. She had a bit of trouble keeping balance. He grabbed her hand, partly to keep from falling himself. Then came the awkward silence and stammered apologies.  
  
"So, we can't stay apart can we?" Yokashi said, with a cocky smirk.  
  
"Guess not. So what are you doing here?" DJ replied, with a small spark of happiness.  
  
"I'm just bored. I come her every time I'm aloud in the palace."  
  
"This place is huge, can you really remember where everything is?"  
  
"Nope, I get lost every time I come here and end up in this place."  
  
She started laughing, and when she looked up she noticed he was staring at her she had to ask why.  
  
"Because you're pretty, and I haven't had a real chance to see you properly."  
  
~*~  
  
Anna Marie was waiting patiently in the garden of the palace. She waited for something, anything to happen. Nobody seemed to be willing to let her do anything except fight. Right now, that was the one thing she didn't feel like doing. She made a fist and concentrated on it. She began to feel a cool sensation flow into it. She closed her eyes and remembered the music she used to play so well. She wondered if she could still do it. When she opened her fist and eyes, a flute had formed in it. The clear ice made a very beautiful effect as she put it to her mouth.  
  
She began to play a slow and twisting song on the flute that sounded so crystalline and clear. Then she heard a piano in the pause of a particularly difficult part of the song. Her eyes opened and stopped playing. She could still tell where it came from. She walked down a long corridor to a huge room filled with instruments. The pianist was none other than the emperor himself. She was shocked and only the cold ice flute brought her back to her senses. He looked up with his charming eyes and smiled. He stopped playing before he spoke.  
  
"I knew I'd heard a flute somewhere," he said.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I could not help myself, it's been so long." she trailed off in reply.  
  
"No, no! That's just fine! I enjoyed your playing very much; it inspired me to play a piece myself. Your talents are more than welcome in this room."  
  
"Really? Thank you so much!" her eyes lit up as she hugged the older man (He was still in his 20's).  
  
Marcus walked into the room only to see the two of them playing together and couldn't help but pick up a violin and join in the piece he knew so well. Soon they were all playing like an orchestra. The music was beautiful, as was the notion behind it.  
  
~*~  
  
Katie was talking to Demos about the current situation. She was a very smart person. It was obvious by how well she pointed out the pattern in which the enemy was attacking.  
  
"Hmm. it sounds as though enemy sent out its stronger minions first to give you a taste of the terror that they can unleash. However, when they saw that you could almost defeat or capture them, they withdrew the stronger minions and put forth weaker demonic monsters to do their dirty work whilst they trained more. They must have had spies everywhere. When they figured out that you were going to unseal me, they must've sent the stronger minions again to delay the process for as long as possible, maybe even stopping the ceremony all together. But why then would they simply send out a monster to face me if they knew it would accomplish nothing?" she said feeling quite disturbed. She knew why, but she wanted a second opinion.  
  
"They probably wanted to gauge your skill to see just how good you were, but they were expendable monsters to begin with, probably only good for killing a few people slowly, and destroying small buildings, your standard class z genetically mutated monster. I'm surprised you didn't think of that," Demos replied.  
  
"I did, but what I don't understand is why they just didn't research the individual status of the fighters in the tournament based upon the performance given while fought against. All it would take is Internet access, and that shouldn't be too hard to find. But I suppose the government could track you down pretty easily considering they can find out exactly who did what and when through the net. That shouldn't have stopped them either because there are thousands of ways to hide your identity online. The best they should be able to do is trace the original broadcast to the computer you used, but that wouldn't give them any trouble at all," she said. This was really bugging her.  
  
"The government has sealed away those files in their private file storage, everyone is denied. I suppose they could have hacked in, but those skills aren't generally common," he said.  
  
Just then the pendant Katie was wearing began to glow and a holograph of the emperor appeared. He looked straight ahead and said in an urgent yet calm voice, "Katie, Demos, pack your bags. You'll be united with the other sleeping princesses and fellow KNIGHTS force officials in the Sapphire Establishment. Be ready in three hours."  
  
~*~  
  
Well that's all of chapter 8, it was a whole ten pages long. It took a long time to write! I hope you guys appreciate this! ^. ^ Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I know it wasn't that good, but once I hit my writing stride you'll see it get better. Thanks to all of my reviewers, even if you flamed me. I really appreciate your taking the time to read my story and tell me your opinions. However, I'm not getting that much feed back on any of my stories, so if you like this story or you just want to see if this story is better or worse than my other work, please read my other fics. Oh and a note about Case's song, I wrote it myself, even though it isn't a real song (it's more like poetry if anything). Thank you for reading, and please, I beg of you, for the love of Pete! Review!  
  
Sapphire 


	9. United We Stand

Sapphire Midnight  
  
Chapter 9  
  
United we stand.  
  
Hi there, it's been forever! School is taking up all my spare time lately. I'm sorry for not updating but as afore mentioned, I've been super busy. Okay enough excuses. Welcome to another chapter of Sapphire Midnight. I hope you guys are enjoying this. I hope you review even if you hate the story, it would mean a lot to me if you did. Then maybe I'll write a better story just for you! This is not my best work, but then who knows? Oh well. read on and enjoy. Oh and show some love, please review!  
  
**  
  
In the Sapphire Imperial Establishment.  
  
Case had changed into what one would classify as street clothes. She had on a pair of worn out jeans and a long T-shirt that said, 'trained for combat' with a black background. Her hair was in a long braid that reached her waist. A dozen bracelets around her right wrist glinted silver and jingled as she walked through the palace gates. She was admitted because of the glowing symbol on his forehead. It was a peace sign in the shape of a heart with an arrow going through it. As she approached the front doors she was greeted by Daranden who was not in formal wear either. He had a pair of back jeans and a blue T-shirt. His hair was untidy as usual, but it did look nice.  
  
"Good morning Sapphire," he said.  
  
"Please, when we aren't in battle, don't call me that," she replied.  
  
"Then what do you want me to call you? Case? Ms Harmony?" he asked her.  
  
"Case, if you wouldn't mind Mr.." she trailed off.  
  
"If you would call me Heero, I would appreciate that very much. I don't like my given name much, it's too long if you ask me," He said.  
  
Just then a memory of the guy who lived next door came to her mind. ' Of course! Heero was his name! But this can't be him. he told me his name was way longer and he hated it.but he was never this cute. He was never this smooth either,' she thought as she stared at him. She was in doubt and shock, but then her watch beeped and she remembered that they were meeting the others today. She grabbed his wrist and sprinted at top speed to the great hall of the palace. Heero just a fraction of a second behind her. They screeched to a stop straightened themselves out a little bit and walked in slowly with their hands still intertwined. They both genuflected before their emperor and as they tried to put their hands on their hearts they blushed furiously and let go of each other's hand.  
  
"My emperor, I am sorry we were late upon our arrival," Case said trying to look away from the man's eyes.  
  
"Forgive us your Excellency time got away from us. It will not happen again," Heero picked up on the cue she set for him.  
  
"You are both forgiven. However, you do realize that you are not at all dressed for the occasion, do you not?" He said in a very proper and tired fashion.  
  
"Your Excellency, we have chosen to meet our fellow guardian's and KNIGHTS Force officials as regular people so as to befriend them without them thinking it is merely our duty to do so. Also, this is more comfortable for me," Case answered. Heero didn't mind that she answered for him, just so long as she did so like this.  
  
"Very well. They should be arriving now, so we shall go to the teleportation chamber without delay" he said. Even though he said it simply it sounded like a proclamation. This made the two on the floor nervous and they arose from their positions on the ground quickly to the position of attention.  
  
As the emperor passed them they did an about face and marched after him. He led them down twisting corridors that one could easily get lost in, and down winding staircases that would have made you dizzy from both the height and the manner in which they went down. They whole way was brightly lit and decorated with Chinese lanterns and runway lights and special ceiling lights. The whole of the lighting effect was a soft Sapphire blue glow with different designs on the floor and brightly lit portraits and paintings. It was beautiful.  
  
As they walked on they were told about the paintings and designs and the other KNIGHTS Force officials and guardians. It seemed as though the trip would never end.  
  
** In the Topaz Imperial Establishment.  
  
Katie ran down the hallway of the Topaz palace. She'd been allowed to stay the night since she has no place to go. She had changed into a form fitting yellow suit and heels. She ran as fast as she could; if they took any longer they'd be late to meet everyone else. She was running top speed and as she did, she ran into poor Demos! There was a hideous crash and she ended up on top of him. She got off of him as soon as she realized what happened. She grabbed his wrist muttered a few apologies and sped off again, this time with a hostage. They reached the teleportation room were the emperor was waiting for them. She jumped in the air, dragging Demos with her as if he was a rag doll, and when she landed she was on her knees and though he was dizzy, Demos ended up that way too.  
  
"I-huff huff-apologize for-huff huff- being late sire," she said nearly passing out.  
  
"Ditto," said Demos who had swirls for eyes.  
  
"That is fine, but we have no time for apologizing, we will just barely be able to make it on time," said the emperor, and with that he clapped his hands together and began to chant. "I call upon the powers of the great Topaz Family Gem, the greatest power of them all, the gift of the planet of Venus. Grant me the power to fly, take me to my final destination! To Sapphire's Sacred Star!"  
  
They were carried away to the Teleportation Chamber of the Sapphire Palace. It was brightly lit and full of beautiful art, just like the hall leading up to the Chamber. They appeared before the emperor of Sapphire establishment in a dazzling array of light and energy. It was a spectacular thing to behold.  
  
"It appears we've arrived just in time to greet our guests," Sapphire Emperor said.  
  
"It seems so," said Case and Heero in unison. They smiled at each other and turned back to see Katie and Demos for the first time. Katie's hair was styled in curls and pulled out of her face. Demos was dressed in blue jeans and a yellow shirt. His hair was in his usual long braid and his cocky smile was back again.  
  
"Well, hello there. 1st Sgt. Demos Maxwell at your service, and you are?" he said in his smoothest voice.  
  
"Good evening, I'm Master Sgt. Daranden Yuki and this is Case Harmony, it's nice to meet you," Heero said. This was already getting too formal for his taste.  
  
"Hey I'm Katie Summers, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," she said. Case was at this time the only sign of comfort in the room for Katie. She made her feel incredibly at home.  
  
"Nice to meet you Katie, I believe we should be making room for our other guests, they should be arriving soon and this isn't a very big space," Case said. She tool a few steps backwards and was followed by everyone in the room. Demos stood next to her as they waited for the next arrivals.  
  
One minute later in a burst of dancing flames, the Ruby Emperor and Amber and Zin appeared before the current party. Amber was immediately nervous and was about to hyperventilate when she caught sight of Case something snapped. She was some what calmed by the sight of Case. This was partially because of Katie's power to soak up emotions, Case's power to calm, and Amber's notice of informality. They all introduced themselves and in a great flash of pulsating lightning, Mona, Miliardo, and the Emerald Emperor. A large amount of pearls appeared and materialized into an ice casing. The ice shattered and standing in elegance was Anna Marie, Marcus and their emperor. In a brilliant show of aurora like lights, DJ and her party appeared. Once everyone was introduced the party advanced to the great hall.  
  
No one appeared as elegantly as the Aqua Pearl Representatives. It took a while to reach the Great Hall of Sapphire so the Aqua Pearl representatives were the final source of entertainment. Anna played the flute, Marcus played a miniature harp, the emperor played a sax and Case sang.  
  
"Aren't your hands getting numb?" Case asked between songs.  
  
"Of course they aren't. Our powers allow us to handle any type of ice with out it becoming too cold. I should think you would have remembered that from your lessons at the academy," the emperor said in reply.  
  
'Geez, what a grouch! Of course I remember! It's just conversation!' Case thought. Katie winced, Anna sighed, and DJ and Amber mentally flipped him off. Mona sort of shrugged it off. The group reached its destination when all of this was finished. The emperors reached their separately prepared thrones at the highest part of the hall. The officials and guardians stopped about half way into the hall and genuflected before their emperors.  
  
"We the emperors of the united Establishments have agreed that the people of our esteemed establishments are too important to risk any further damage, physical or psychological. Therefore we have brought you here to join forces. Only if you work as one will you defeat this enemy. We have analyzed a great deal and come to the conclusion that these attacks are organized and are part of a much bigger flow. Who ever is behind this is very dangerous and powerful and obviously very resourceful. You will all be working around the clock day and night to solve this dilemma. Protecting the innocent is you key priority. You've been brought here to work together to increase the chances of catching our angry attackers, in order to return to the state of peace we once had. Until this happens, everyone is in great danger. We ask of you this one favor and then whatever you please will be yours for the taking," said Sapphire's emperor.  
  
"Your highness, with all due respect, what makes you think they won't know, much less notice that the emperor is gone form the region they next attack?" Case asked. She had serious doubts about this obviously flawed plan.  
  
"We will not be staying, it is the KNIGHTS officials who are to stay. We are merely here to address you as a whole and relay your missions to you," Emerald's emperor stated.  
  
"Won't they know about all of this? They were very well informed about all of our awakenings, and very keen on stopping you from unsealing us. There must be an information leak somewhere in our lovely little system," Katie argued.  
  
"That has yet to be discovered, but none the less we are in search of a possible leak. We have thought of some things. It is unwise to just spout out information. We have reason to believe enemy signal scramblers intercepted the messages. They must have used their technology to hack into our system and search for the appropriate information, hence the increased security on our data base," the Ruby emperor replied.  
  
"While that may be true we have no leads, nothing to go on, and no clue where to start looking," Mona said.  
  
"We have done all we can for you, it is up to you to find the rest of the answers for yourself," said the Sapphire emperor.  
  
With that the emperor's rose to their feet and chanted the incantation that would take them home, they all disappeared in a similar fashion to that of how they arrived in the first place. Sapphire emperor left the room leaving the young people left inside very upset and confused. They all rose from their positions on the ground and began to speak.  
  
Immediately Demos started hitting on Case. Heero was getting annoyed about his 'friend' getting hit on by a total stranger. After all, Demos was supposed to be here with Katie.  
  
"So your name is Case huh? That's original. I've never heard of someone naming their kid just Case before. Is it short for something?" Demos asked.  
  
"No, it's just Case. What about you? Your name's pretty cool. Who named you?" She asked.  
  
"My Grandpa named me because my parents have no imagination," he said.  
  
She started laughing and that made Heero snap. He was gonna have a word with Mr. Maxwell. He took Demos away form his object of affection. Case went to talk to the other guardians while the two guys had a little chat.  
  
"Hi everyone," Case said to the girls and the remaining guys, "I hope you all will enjoy some of your stay here. If you want anything let me know, I'll see what I can do."  
  
DJ and Katie, who were over dressed, wanted to know if they could get any clothes. Katie fit into stuff from Case's room just fine, but DJ who was smaller than both of them needed to get her own wardrobe right away. It wasn't long before they re-entered the great hall in more comfortable clothes. Blue jeans and solid T-shirts for the guests and Case had changed into a different shirt. It was the deepest blue and had a beautiful flower outline on it in slightly lighter blue. It had been her mother's shirt when she was about Case's age, and she hadn't been able to get rid of it; it was too special to her. Now it was special to Case, and she wanted to show it off.  
  
Heero was the first to notice it when he got done with his chat with Demos. They were friends now. But this wouldn't be the last time flirting with Case would get Demos in trouble. He noticed soon after as well. She was even prettier than before. Katie snapped him back to reality when she started talking about the attacks. Soon everyone was focused on the right topic and thinking of ways to present their theories to everyone at once. When everyone was finished thinking and talking about the enemy's pattern Amber noticed it was past 7:00. And they were all very tired.  
  
Case led everyone to a room in the palace that they could sleep in. They all ended up sleeping in connected rooms anyway. So it was impossible to have to worry about losing your way. All they'd have to do is go to Case or Heero's room without waking anyone up. It wouldn't be hard to do unless you were really uncoordinated. That night everyone slept well.  
  
**  
  
That's all for this chapter of Sapphire Midnight. I hope you enjoyed this one. I had to type it all over again after I forgot to save it the other day. I'm so unlucky! J/K anywho, please review and continue to wait patiently for Chapter 10 of Sapphire Midnight: Divided We Fall. Thank you so much for reading!  
  
Sapphire 


	10. Clearance and Information

Sapphire Midnight  
  
Chapter 10  
  
Clearance and Information  
  
I haven't worked on this one for a long time! I almost forgot about this fic. I can't believe I forgot! I'm really sorry everybody! I'll try harder to remember from now on. Well, on with the story, cause I know that's what you really want. This chapter is kind of boring, but essential to the story. Oh yes it is also the first chapter of the year 2004. Happy Reading!  
  
~  
  
In the Sapphire Establishment.  
  
At dawn the group began to wake up, Katie and Case being the first to wake up tool it upon themselves to wake everyone else up. The girls had a little tiny problem with it because they were still a little tired, but they were happy to be awake and not caught in a spell that could have kept them in a state of endless reflection forever. The experience that left them with three thoughts, 'if anyone tries to do that again I'll kill them,' 'it must suck being dead,' and 'I never want to fall asleep again!'  
  
The guys however, did not appreciate being woken up at 3 o'clock in the morning, no matter how pretty the person who woke them. Demos and Zin were the least happy about these turns of events. KNIGHTS force officials woke up two hours later than the time they were woken up at. Nobody was really happy about waking up at this time, but Demos and Zin were the ones who let their displeasure shine like the sun.  
  
"Who wakes up at three o'clock? What is wrong with you people?" Demos yelled. It was a good thing the walls were sound proofed because the sheer volume of his voice would have woken the entire establishment.  
  
"I agree, we need more sleep than this. It isn't normal for people to wake up at this hour. Four o'clock is out of the question and even five is pushing it!" Zin argued on Demos' side.  
  
Case and Anna were fed up with this childishness and were angry because they almost lost their hearing. Anna stepped up first.  
  
"Oh for the love of Pete! Hell on Earth used to ignore all child labor laws and wake us up at three o'clock every morning to train and learn so many things our brains would be ready to explode! If you could handle it then, you can handle it now!" she screamed at the two guys who now looked like they wanted to crawl under a rock and die.  
  
Case couldn't help but add, "In case you've forgotten, we are in the middle of an establishment wide crisis. More is at stake here than you beauty sleep. I can't believe someone so selfish would be chosen to awaken us. Your spirit is pathetic!"  
  
Demos and Zin, though obviously shredded by that last comment, refused to give up without a fight.  
  
"If it weren't for these pathetic and selfish men you wouldn't be here right now!" Demos shouted at Case angrily. She didn't even blink.  
  
"We haven't woken up this early since graduation, it takes time to get used to it again," Zin weakly submitted as a defense. Anna just looked at him as if to say 'get over it wimp.'  
  
Case was going to win this argument if it killed her. She was really angry now. Her calm expression didn't fade, but her eyes were like hell fire and her voice was dangerously low and full of will and conviction.  
  
"Get over yourselves. We appreciate that you woke us up from a never- ending nightmare, but if you think that means we owe you something, you are mistaken. You get enough compensation from your deals with the emperors of the establishments. I'm sorry if you had to kiss complete strangers in order to get a chance to escape and run away from everything, and you have wake up a whole two hours early, but you know what? I don't give a damn. All I care about right now is all of those people who are counting on us to win this battle, I'm not worried about what will happen to me in the process or after it; I'll worry about that later. All that counts now is saving those people who believe in us."  
  
With that the whole room went quiet. She was so livid she left the room followed by Anna who was ready to calm her down. The girls stared at their feet while the guys glared at the two who screwed it up for all of them. Demos and Zin wanted more than ever to just drop dead that very instant. They really fucked up this time.  
  
Case was now in her own room with Anna and picking out her clothes for the day. She put on her jeans and a new black T-shirt that had long sleeves that flared at the elbow. As she was lacing up her heeled boots she was fuming to Anna who had been dressing on the other side of the room and was now tying her navy tennis shoes. She had on jeans and a navy blue shirt similar to Case's, but hers had a picture of an aqua pearl flower on it. Case finished and put on a watch and locket. Anna put on her watch and the favorite vintage hat. It was like a beatnik hat. Case and she had been talking the entire time they were doing all of this.  
  
Anna had managed to calm Case down, but she didn't have to do much. Case was still angry when she started talking to Anna, but she was more sad than angry at this point. She had let her anger escape her while she had been fighting with the two guys in the other room.  
  
"I'm sorry I had to say it, but it needed to be said. Do they even realize what it's like to hear that and almost lose your hearing over it?" she asked Anna.  
  
"I don't know, but they definitely feel guilty now. It's almost like they didn't even realize what they'd gotten themselves into before it blew up in their faces. We can relate to that, but that doesn't mean that we should be sympathetic. They're actually getting something out of this deal," Anna replied.  
  
The two girls smiled at each other and got ready to leave when they actually introduced themselves to each other properly.  
  
"I'm Anna Marie Renea Skye, it's a pleasure to meet you."  
  
"And I'm Case Nicoliana Harmony, it's equally pleasurable to make your acquaintance." The two girls laughed at how formal they must have sounded. They hadn't forgotten the custom the Academy taught them. They hadn't had the chance to yet.  
  
"You can call me Anna."  
  
"You can call me Case."  
  
The others had apparently gotten dressed as well. Everyone was wearing jeans of some sort with their secondary color being the main color of their shirt. Katie's was orange, Amber's was Maroon, Mona's was gold, DJ's was Silver, and their male counterparts where the same. Demos and Zin apologized as the group made their way to the conference room. They had been quickly forgiven and it was somewhat of a relief that nobody decided to hold a grudge.  
  
It had been 20 minutes when the group finally sat down to a breakfast of donuts, English muffins with jam, and coffee. The group decided to split into factions to get the work done faster.  
  
Katie, Case, Marcus, and Yokashi formed a group to find out the enemies' possible motives and whittle the possibilities down as much as possible. Heero, Zin, Anna, and Mona formed a group to analyze the attack patterns and find out what would be struck next, where, when, and how. Amber, DJ, Demos, and Miliardo formed the last group who would try to find out who was doing this and what their powers were. Everyone worked until about 3 o 'clock p.m. when they took their lunch break and finally started talking to each other as people eating lunch together. When they were done everyone moved back to their workstations and their work.  
  
The emperor came into the conference room to see where they had all gotten. Everyone was working on a lap top computer and talking in low voices to keep from interrupting a different group from their work. It was really more like an office without phones than a conference. He almost thought he had the wrong room. Sapphire Emperor decided to talk to Case first, since she was really the only one he recognized.  
  
"Guardian, what is the stand point of your group?" he asked rather rudely.  
  
"Well," she began, "If I knew which guardian and which group you were talking about, perhaps I could tell you, Your Excellency."  
  
"Watch your tongue Guardian, what is going on here? I demand to know the progress you have made," Sapphire Emperor said.  
  
"My emperor, we were just about to report to each other the status of our factions' findings. It is only our first day so we might not have gotten as far as we'd originally hoped," she answered professionally.  
  
Case's group went first, "Katie, Marcus, Yokashi and I have found out the following."  
  
Katie continued where Case left off almost as if she had been reading her thoughts.  
  
"The enemies seem to have one thing in common, they wanted the awakening ceremonies disrupted. It is clear that our awakening was not something they wanted. But that caused a strange, yet perfectly reasonable thought to come to mind, what if that's just what they wanted us to think?"  
  
Yokashi picked up with, "It made perfect sense, they wanted us to think that it would ruin their plans if we awakened the guardians, but they knew that the attacks would eventually lead to this. The question is why? What reason could they possibly have for doing this?"  
  
Marcus presented the theories they had come up with, "Possibility number one, the group are terrorists with access to genetic labs, all sorts of technology, and people. We believe that the ringleaders that have shown themselves have been trained by the Academy, and their ringleader must be extremely powerful in order to have that many resources. Possibility number two, these people have something against the guardians and are out for revenge, in which case, they are probably hiding their true powers from us. Possibility number three, the attacks are a diversion, meant to distract us from their real plan. In which case the outcome could be catastrophic for the people of the establishments. So far, this is all we have as far as motives go."  
  
Case cut in before the emperor moved on to the next Faction's findings.  
  
"However, we would like to point out that we don't know much about the attackers yet. We are having a hard time accessing information relating to the attackers. So far all we have is that the attackers have all been women and genetically altered creatures. We know they introduced themselves with the names Io, Europa, and Callista. We assume that these names are false, and we knew that the names were all moons of Jupiter. Thus we have concluded that the offenders are somehow involved with the building projects on Jupiter's moons. We need more time to get a real fix on the problem."  
  
"Hmm, this is very serious. I'll do my best to get you any clearance you may need to anything, but all I can do is give you the key, you need to find the right doors," Sapphire Emperor said thoughtfully.  
  
"Zin, Mona, Anna, and I have found out the following about the attack patterns of the enemies," Heero said.  
  
Mona picked up right away, "The attacks have all taken place at highly populated areas in each establishment, the attackers also chose to attack the temples in the center of each establishment's capital cities. They struck first at the First Imperial Bank chapters near the capitals. This is where they first introduced themselves. They decided to attack places that would effect the people. So naturally, trade, and the economy was affected. Since they have already dealt a blow to the people's morale by attacking the temples, it is only natural that they will next attack food carriers, we have done some research and found that the most highly sought after food market is the Supply Street. Most people in the establishments get their food there, and that is the most likely place they will attack next. The busiest part of Supply Street is the Check out station. We think this is where they will attack next, however there has been no pattern in time, so we cannot estimate when."  
  
"The best we can do now is to wait for their next move and try to be prepared. The KNIGHTS force has come up with no patterns or strategies for this, and it has taken an extremely long time to figure this much out. They are good at making themselves look like amateurs, so we must not underestimate their plans, whatever they may be," Zin explained.  
  
"We need to stay in direct contact with the food suppliers all over the establishments, so we'll need your clearance and permission sire. We also need to have cooperation from the rest of the emperors," Anna said.  
  
"Something will happen soon. We know that the attacks have never been spaced out this far, they must be planning another attack. It is best that we stay on our guard," Daranden added as a final statement.  
  
"You have my permission to start connecting with the food suppliers, and I will immediately get the emperors to follow suit. You must make haste," the emperor said.  
  
With that Zin, Anna, Daranden, and Mona all left the room to complete their mission. It was clear that they were relieved to go, but they spent no time getting jackets, they immediately ran to the supply room for communicators. After that, the group was off with the aid of Daranden to show them where to go, since none of them have ever been in the Sapphire Establishment.  
  
The next group presented their information on the attackers, which was severely lacking, despite their best efforts. They could not find much information on the attackers, but what they did find out was not of much aid.  
  
"Demos, Amber, Miliardo, and I have found out the following about the attackers," DJ began for the group.  
  
Demos cut in right away to show that he had doe his fair share. "The one known as Io used to head a large crime syndicate, they were the culprits of many robberies of the most secure banks in all of the establishments. It was very clear that she was never actually caught. She has supernatural powers, but I have no idea as to the extent of those powers. She is a criminal mastermind, but nowhere near smart enough to operate a genetic lab, let alone by herself. We have therefore come to the conclusion that all of these attackers are working together in this operation."  
  
Amber cut in with the next tidbit of information. "The one known as Europa used to be involved in smuggling operations. She used to also pull off small sabotage jobs. That is all of the information available on this attacker."  
  
Miliardo told the room about the last attacker. "The one known as Callista used to be involved in counterfeit money operations. That is all of the information we have on her at the moment."  
  
DJ added her last tidbit before letting the emperor have his say in the matter. "All of the information that we have gathered on these attackers was taken from the KNIGHTS force data base. The information we got was based on physical descriptions. Those who have fought against the attackers know their powers, but that won't do us much good because the KNIGHTS force doesn't document the powers or if they went to a training facility or not. The fastest way to get what we need is to get clearance to the database of the Academy and do research from there. If we know more about these enemies, we can find out more about their objectives and motives."  
  
The emperor seemed quite impressed with all of the progress the guardians have made with the KNIGHTS. He gave his word that he would contact the guardians the second he had the necessary clearance for the information they needed and the things they had to do. Exactly one hour after he left the missing group returned from their mission. Nobody went back to work.  
  
Conversations about things completely not related to the matter at hand ensued and when they were finally notified that they had all of the clearance they needed to go on working, it was eight o'clock. Everyone except for Demos and Case went to distribute the communicators to food suppliers. Demos and Case stayed behind to continue the research on Io, Europa, and Callista.  
  
The first place they looked was in the Academy database. They looked for the powers first in order to narrow the search down a bit. They entered Europa's power first. This attacker controlled plant life, she could do anything as far as plants went. They found out that precisely 2, 458 people had this power and only 800 of those people were men. Next they entered her physical description. Blonde hair, green eyes, and pale skin. Only 300 females matched that description. The final resort was the name Europa. When they entered this name only 3 women were left to chose from. The Europa that attacked the cities was the third name on the records. They printed out the information and set to work searching for information on the rest of the attackers and anything they had in common.  
  
Meanwhile.  
  
The rest of the team went on distributing the communicators all around the establishments. And as they distributed, they found that they had missed some suppliers, the task literally took them until 9:00 o'clock P.M. the next day to complete. When they returned nobody had enough energy left to talk so everyone went directly to bed. Case and Demos had used their powers of healing on everyone to make the fatigue that they suffered from go away, but the need for rest was still apparent. So they let everyone rest before sharing their important findings with everyone else. The resting period lasted for about 6 hours. It was just barely enough time to let their strength return to them. It was three o'clock in the morning again, but nobody complained this time.  
  
~  
  
Wow, that was a pretty long chapter. Five whole pages of this kind of stuff is very hard to write for you people you know? Happy New Year. I hope you all make good on your resolutions like reviewing more! I will try to update more, but that might not be very feasible once I get back to school. I have mid terms coming up soon and a learner's permit to earn. I have a lot of studying to do still. I probably won't be updating too soon, but I'll try to do it more often. Well, good bye for now.  
  
Love ya!  
  
Sapphire 


End file.
